The only remaining vestige of Union Station #3 now stands in the Nationwide Arena District.
For many generations Columbus was known as the City of Arches and hearing this you might think it was because of this Victorian arch in McFerson Commons Park. You may have noticed the famous arch in the arena district and probably thought it was some relic of a building that was once located there and that's the reason we were called the City of Arches. Well, it is a relic from the past, but it wasn't always located there. In fact, the Union Station Arch was located on North High Street right about where the Columbus Convention Center and the Hyatt Regency are today.
This single arch is the only remaining architectural feature of the last Union Station in Columbus. The first was built in 1850 and although trains were a somewhat new mode of transport, the idea of riding the rails grew quickly and that first station was overwhelmed and a new, more modern train station was needed.
Over the years there were three-different Union Stations occupying the land east of North High Street and about a mile north of the statehouse. The last one to occupy this location disappeared in the 1970s through a bit of controversy and late night shenanigans.
When Amtrac pulled out passenger service the station became a deserted relict. The site was deemed too valuable and the restoration work too expensive; the last Union Station was torn down to make room for new buildings— except for the lonely arch which was saved by a few determined individuals, dismantled and stored for a number of years until the Arena District was completed. (Read more about how the Union Station Arch was saved from the wrecking ball just minutes before it was demolished.)
Trains still travel on the original right-of-way into downtown Columbus
Today, all of the Union Stations are all but a memory, except for the Union Station Arch. The trains and track have been greatly reduced from their former dominance in the city, but they are still there, just below street level throughout the downtown area. The long freight trains no longer tie up traffic across High Street. In fact, you really have to look to find the trains.
The above is a detail of a birds-eye view drawing of Columbus created in 1872 that shows the First Union Station.
First Union Station at the corner of North High and Naughten Street. Today, the Hyatt Regency Hotel sits about on the same spot and at the same angle as that first station.
This station was built in 1850 and at that time was just outside the Columbus city limits. By 1864 at least 4 railroads crossed High Street causing long delays on High Street as trains were made-up, loaded and unloaded.
In 1865 Abraham Lincoln's Funeral Train stopped here and his casket was loaded onto a decorated wagon which was driven down High Street to the Statehouse.
In 1868 the Union Depot Company of Columbus was incorporated with the purpose to make a study whether or not it was feasible to build a new and improved station that could handle the increasing train traffic and also relieve the traffic congestion on High Street.
The first Union Station was nothing much more than a very large wooden barn with three railroad tracks going through the center. Almost from its inception, the train station was inadequate, but by the time the Civil War came to an end, rail traffic throughout the state was expanding at breakneck speed.
In 1875 work was completed on the new Union Station. Compared with the old, this brick Victorian looked like a mansion with seven rail lines running through it. The new station was further back from High Street, but still didn't provide enough room for the ever increasingly longer passenger and freight trains.
In less than 20 years the city would realize the need for an even larger train station.
The third Union Station opened with great fanfare in 1897. The city was proud of the new Victorian-style station, even more proud that the aging walkway and the dark tunnels were no where to be scene. Instead all of the trains were now under the street. The long ornate portico connecting the two large triumphant arches provided an ideal location for visitors to arrive and depart from the city no matter the weather. Electric street cars ran a regular schedule and could easily climb the now raised street surface. On holidays flags would fly high above the arches and at night the metal arches were illuminated giving visitors a grand sceptical.
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